By Lieut.-Colonel Cecil Allanson
Allanson commanded the 6th Gurkha Rifles during one of the regiment’s pivotal actions at Gallipoli, the attack on Sari Bair. This is where the Gurkhas captured the ridge but were forced to retire after coming under artillery fire, potentially by mistake from the British Navy.
The published diary of Cecil Allanson is an interesting document not least because of when it was published in August 1916, just seven months after the evacuation. It was a bringing together of the diaries that he kept during the campaign, detailing not only what happened but also his thoughts and observations. Many of these observations are highly critical of the Gallipoli campaign and are more important for the fact that they were not the product of hindsight like many accounts that were published after the war.
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A review from Diomedes
“I really enjoyed this. It is a contemporary diary, originally ‘published’ to a restricted group in 1916, short after the Gallipoli Campaign ended. As the current Editor notes, the fact that this was as near contemporary as you can realistically get means that Allanson’s work isn’t impacted by the later knowledge as so many post war diaries and accounts are.
Allanson’s contemporary criticisms of Generals and their generalship in this diary will come as a surprise to many who believe that such criticism only occurs in later years. It is particularly interesting coming from a decorated Field Officer, and a professional soldier.
For anyone interested in the Gallipoli Campaign this is an absolute must but anyone interested in WW1 in general will find this volume full of fascinating information.
Well done Gosling Press for making it available to a wider public.”